It may seem like sports car racing and hack mechanic-ing have taken over my life, but echos of mountain bike racing continue to permeate life on leeward side of the Rocky Mountains. Make no mistake about it -- if I could still ride and train regularly I would be miking it up for the 35 and older podium every chance I could. Instead, mountain biking has become an exercise of gratitude for me. I'm grateful for any chance I get to ride, especially if it involves some sweet alpine single track. Last year for my birthday we headed up to the Southern Collegiate Range for just such an adventure.
The Monarch Crest trail is a Colorado classic. The possibility of new wilderness designations threaten to close mountain biking access to it periodically, so I try to make it a point to ride it when I can. We headed up on a weekday and camped at the nearby Angel of Shavano campground. Nestled at the base of Mt. Shavano with crystal clear beaver ponds, the Colorado Trail, and nearby Angel of Shavano waterfalls, Angel of Shavano Campground is one of the best in Colorado. We set up camp and spent a day relaxing, hiking, and exploring the wilderness. I woke up at first light and flew the drone through an aerial playground made by the forest and creeks. Here's the result.
Aerial Playground at Angel of Shavano
Jonny V Relaxing
Angel of Shavano Falls
The next day Doug, Jo, and I woke up early and shuttled ourselves up to the trailhead at the top of Monarch Pass. It would be my first time riding the Monarch Crest on a hard tail. My fitness may have been lacking, but my tech skills on the Superfly were as good as ever. I was able to outride or hang with the best of the other riders we encountered, even on the steep baby-head filled descents. The trail hadn't changed much since my last excursion. We blazed it in time to beat the inevitable monsoonal thunderstorm. The only casualty was Jo's bike. She managed to crack the only piece of carbon (the chain stay) during a crash. She didn't even realize it until after the ride!
The Monarch Crest Trail
No comments:
Post a Comment